No. 3 Bulldogs Split Doubleheader with St. Thomas

SEGUIN, Texas -- The No. 3 Texas Lutheran softball team split their Friday doubleheader with St. Thomas dropping the first game, 8-3, before responding with a 6-1 win in game two at Ed Kruse Stadium.

The loss marked TLU's second regular season SCAC loss, the most since joining the conference in 2014, the program's first home SCAC loss since 2014 against Trinity, and the first loss to the Celts in program history.

The Bulldogs (31-4, 15-2 SCAC) got on the board first in the first inning. After Linzee Leal (Corpus Christi/Mary Carroll) reached on an error, Madison Johnson (Round Rock/Round Rock) reached on a single to center field to set up Serena Gonzalez's (Corpus Christi/Foy H. Moody) RBI single to score Leal. Bailey Hudgeons (Dripping Springs/Dripping Springs) would follow with an RBI fielder's choice that would score an elusive Johnson, who avoided the Celts tag at the plate to give Texas Lutheran an early 2-0 lead. 

St. Thomas (26-7, 14-2 SCAC) responded in the top of the second with two runs of their own, tying the game 2-all.

TLU would regain the lead with a solo homer from Gonzalez, her SCAC-leading ninth home run of the season. With the home run, the freshman tied Haley Padilla for the program's freshman home run record. Gonzalez paced the Bulldogs at the plate with a 2-for-3, two RBI showing. 

St. Thomas would take advantage of an uncharacteristic defensive showing from TLU as the Celts would score six runs on five hits and two TLU errors to take the decisive 8-3 lead.

Senior Ashlyn Strother (Seabrook/Clear Falls), who had won 39 games in a row dating back to the 2022 season opener, took her first loss of the season in the circle, surrendering seven runs (one earned) on six hits in 4.1 innings pitched with five strikeouts. The loss marks Strother's first loss since the 2021 DIII Women's College World Series. The 39-game win streak is the third longest in NCAA Division-III history with Allyson Fournier's (Tufts) 45-game streak from April 2013 to May 2014 being the longest. Sydney Ouellette (Corpus Christi/Gregory-Portland) finished the game for the Bulldogs, giving up just one unearned run on three hits.

Texas Lutheran would earn the split with a 6-1 victory in game two with a five-run third inning breaking things open for TLU.

Senior Amanda White (Lockhart/Lockhart) was a force in the circle, throwing a four-hit complete game, allowing just one unearned run and two walks with five strikeouts of the Celts offense. White is now 11-3 on the season.

Six Bulldogs registered a hit in the game with Caelee Clark (Montgomery/Lake Creek), Linzee Leal, Madison Johnson and Serena Gonzalez all driving in runs.

A defensive miscue from the Bulldogs gave the Celts a 1-0 lead through the top of the first.

Texas Lutheran would turn it on in the third with Leal getting the scoring started with a bases loaded RBI fielder's choice - scoring Reagan Hillis (Cedar Park/Cedar Park). Madison Johnson would keep the one-out rally going with an RBI single to score Annie Kay (Sinton/Sinton). Serena Gonzalez would score Caelee Clark on an RBI fielder's choice as TLU took a 3-1 lead. A dropped fly ball from the Celts right fielder would score Linzee Leal and Harleigh Russell (Fort Worth/Boswell), who pinch ran for Gonzalez, as TLU took a 5-1 lead.

After a leadoff double from Reagan Hillis and a sacrifice bunt from Annie Kay, Caelee Clark would drive in Hillis with an RBI single for the final run of the game.

The 3rd-ranked Bulldogs close the series vs. St. Thomas on Saturday at noon at Ed Kruse Stadium. All streaming and stat links can be found on tlubulldogs.com.